McDonald's to phase out supersizing
 

While their reasons may not be, at least it's good to see some socially responsible action taking place.

Thank god! Nobody needs that many fries. Although McDonalds, and fast food in general is partially responsible for people getting fatter and fatter, the decision to eat well or not still rests on the individual. Having salad on the menu doesn't do any good if everyone orders the Big Mac combo.

I think that is total crap. My reasons follow. I love McD's, they are my favorite fast food place. I don't eat there much but I do eat there at least once a month now.

I am about 40-50 lbs over weight. And I could honestly say that fast food (90% of that is McD) is what caused me to be over weight. I don't eat candy, ice cream, and I eat rather healthy at home. But you know what. No one ever drove me to McD's and bought food for me and forced me to eat it. I did it to my self knowing darned well that what I was eating was fat filled and unhealthy.

I am a certified Chef and I can cook great super healthy meals that taste really great, so I could be nice and thin. But again it was MY CHOICE to eat those cheese burgers, fries, and what ever else. I rarely ordered supersize cause I knew that I did not need that extra pop or fries. I made that choice. If a person can't control them selfs enough to not eat them selfs in to morbid obeasity then they deserve to die from it.

I honestly think that McD's should leave the super size on the menu.

They need a Big Mac on Wheat.

.2 oz of lean beef, special sauce (I hate the name of it though) wheat bread, lettuce, pickles, cheese, onions, and sesame seeds.

Yummy.

I think its a step in the right direction, its hard for many people to resist the value of super sizeing. Consumers want to maximize their marginal utility and will therefore get supersize fries if the cost is small and they like fries. Removing them or jacking up the price in proportion to the amount of fries in a medium is the only feasible solution.

This is a load of crap. I stopped by McDonalds to get a Fruit and yogurt parfait - one of the few things they sell that I'll eat - and I saw a sign that said "Real Life Choices." I read on "Trying to carbs, etc..." I'll tell you this, you're fooling noone if you're trying to lose weight and think McDonald's menu is going to help. Eatting a Burger without the bun? The bun is probably the most nutritious part of the burger. It's grade D meat pretty much. There's so much grease also. Makes me sick actually. Back to my parfait - they got rid of the big one, you can only get the small ones. WTF? One of the few non-artery clogging foods they had, and they don't offer them anymore.

I dunno. Whenever I eat at McDonald's, I always refuse the offer to supersize. I do not want, nor do I need, that many fries, or that much soda. On the other hand, it was a choice for some. Now, they no longer have that choice. I'm all about"choice". Conversely, with choice comes a little thing called personal responsibility.

well let's not spread untruths. it's grade-A meat. It's just cooked so blandly that it TASTES like grade-D meat.

Frankly, if a consumer decides to eat too much, that's the consumer's fault.

This is stupid. If I want supersize fries, why should someone tell me it's not my decision what I want to put in my body? If I want to eat the fries, I'll eat the fries dammit.

Give consumers a choice? Just say no to supersizing. That seems to be a legitimate choice.

Of course it's not -your- fault you're overweight....

Not that I could eat that much french fries, I think it is a stupid decision. It honestly should be the person who decides to lose weight.

Amazing what a few obesity law suits will do to a companies repitoire....

Are they also getting rid of SuperSize drinks? I love fountain Coke/Diet Coke and I occasionally drive-thru the local Mickey D's for a drink when I'm feeling indulgent and in need of a good pick-me-up. I like the big drinks because they last me a long time, and they're more cost effective. And fountain drinks rule. :-)

I'm sure thier research showed that now those that would have paid .25 (whatever price) to supersize, will now order another item at full price. Which should pay off nicely.

They are not doing anyone any favors, so don't fall for the "social responsibility" part.

They know that the customers that want a bushel of fries will still get a bushel. Now they have to pay more to get them.

I'm so thankful to come back to america and see so many people and company's trying to de-fattify our population. I think it's a great thing that their taking the supersize meal away. Less pressure for people to spend that extra 80 cents or whatever if it's not an option. Now all they need to do is get some healthier food. Fast food is the only option some times and it would be great to eat healthy while on the run.

I'm on the fence here -- yes it's more responsible, but McD's decision is all about limiting choice and increasing profit margins by offering only smaller portions. If someone wants a supersize next year, they should be able to get it -- but I personall never did, even though it was available and was an extra 25c or whatever. I can't say I totally disagree with anyone who's posted so far.

forseti-6 you especially made some good points, and I liked those yogurt parfaits too. :(


Now I need to rant

In terms of eating smart and staying in shape, people don't seem to realize that Atkins and the South Beach Diet and all the trendy shit that comes out each year isn't necessarily the key to good health. If you are really concerned about your diet and fitness, learn to eat healthy, skip the supersize, and get off your ass and run around the block a few times. It's really not all that hard! Meanwhile places like my cafeteria are starting to offer bland specials and crappier food because of the latest fad. "Atkins Special -- Sandwich w/o the Bun." It's just a piece of plain manky ass meat, and a pickle. WTF is that!!! I can't even get a decent burger anymore!! AARRGH

I want a damn hoagie now.

uhhh, no fucking kidding. i really hate all the people in my dorm whining about their atkins diets, and i really feel like their falling for a bandaid solution. half of them don't seem to understand what their doing, and mess it up, and the other half may lose some weight, but also muscle mass and skrew up their matoblism.. adkins is like this site for me. link
if its two good to be true...

I'm not alone. I think "Special Sauce" sounds like a nickname for what you get on your food for being rude to the waiter.

I eat McD's maybe once a year, but I'm usually with my wife when I do. Those Super Sizers were a good value cause we only needed one order of fries and one drink for the two of us.

This shouldn't be McDonald's problem to get people to reduce their caloric intake.

If I want a Large Fries with my burger instead of the damn Medium, then I should be able to make that decision for myself.

A "Large" fries weighs 6.2 ounces.
A "Supersize" fries weighs 7.0 ounces.

I wouldn't call that a significant difference.

I was considering this as I was sitting in McDonalds this morning having breakfast :D

And I think you hit the nail on the head with that.

Where I live, there actually is NO Large size fries anymore. They fazed that out and now there is ony Small, Medium, and Supersize. :rolleyes:

Jeez, I'm posting a lot in this thread...

DAMMIT!!! I need my 1/2 pound of fries!!!! This is going to suck.

I usually supersize not for the fries, but for the vat-o-cola that it comes with. I am sad that fat people have ruined this for the skinny people with high metabolisms like me.

THANKS A LOT FAT PEOPLE WITH NO SELF CONTROL!!!! CURSE YOU AND YOUR HEART DISEASE...AND OBESITY!!!

I was glad to hear that McD's was getting rid of supersizing. I never want it, and getting rid of it as an option removes a question they ask me that never quite parses right.

"I want a number 1 meal."
"Medium, large, or extra-large?"
"Huh??"

Well its about damn time McDs finally is making the right choice in reducing its menu because people can't keep themselves from ordering SUPERSIZED meals! Cmon America, start taking some responsiblity for your actions. Now that I've said that, I will be awaiting a class action suit because I called Americans irresponsible! But haha! You can't squeeze blood from a rock!

Oh yay.. the fat people who blame everyone but them selves fucked over my menu ONCE AGAIN!

This is bullshit, that sums it up.

People wonder why I have a hatred towards fat people... sheesh.

The problem's not how many fries you get, it's the wholly unsatisfactory size of the burgers. 1/4 pounder? I need two!

edited to say: Bparker, that's a very fetching avatar:)

Now, if we could just phase out McDonalds altogether, that would be a real story. I have decided to boycott them for the rest of my life, for a number of reasons, the main one is their lousy food.

Ugh, I going to go on a bit of a rant type thing about fast food and such. I think this'll be my second rant, so sorry in advance...
I think this pretty damn stupid. Sure a lot of us are fat, but like everyone is saying, its our own damn choice to do it.
How many parents now are both working 40+ hours a week? According to a few places, our workweek is longer then 40 hours, http://www.libraryspot.com/know/workweek.htm and a study released by the International Labour Organization says we're working two weeks more then Canadians. An article about it can be found here, http://www.newsworld.cbc.ca/cgi-bin/...6/labour990906 and heres another thread about hours worked on BBC, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/talking_point/184166.stm
I remember an article saying that Americans working more and more and bringing a lot more of their work home thanks to laptops, cellphones and the like so going home and being able to work out, or cook a good meal are becoming harder and harder. Now, I know my week isn't as bad as some but I go to school and have a job on campus. Those two things take up 40 hours of my week, and I spend another 10 hours on a bus going to school and coming back. When I get home, I don't have the energy to think about a good dinner, I don't have the energy to go run around the block, I just want to relax and rest because I'm dead freakin tired. To my fiancee and I, it was always easier to go out and get some fast food instead of this. We know it didn't help our waist line, but you know what, we didn't give two shits we had to eat and its easier going home to stop at a fast food place. In our hectic life, we neither have the energy or the time.
For all of the people from other countries who are saying "oh you Americans are fat and blah blah blah," so what? We know that we're fat, we're working on it. Some of us don't care, some of us do. I highly doubt we're the only country in the world with obese people.
/rant

Now onto the supersized stuff, I think it's stupid. I liked having the CHOICE to be able to get them, but I never did. It was great sometimes though because I would share them with my fiancee. When I was little, one supersized fry was enough for myself and my two step brothers.

This is just another case of someone having to take the fall for irresponsible people that can’t take care of themselves. This is not new news about McDonalds food. If their portions are such an issue then why aren’t there any complaints about the some of these fancy sit down restaurants that serve single portions that could feed 2-3 people? Where is the difference here? I am so sick of listening to people complaining about things like this. Look in the mirror, stand up and take responsibility for your own actions. If they don’t want to take care of themselves then why should someone else?

BTW guys, atkins isn't a trendy new diet. It's not even a diet. Its a way of life. And it's been around for over 50 years, so it's not new.

With all due respect Fallon, it is this exact way of living that slows you down. You would have more energy at the end of the day if you maintained a healthier lifestyle. This includes both eatoing and exercising. Perhaps you don't care. Perhaps you do. It is definitely easier to go to a burger joint and pick up some take home grease, but think of the benefits you could have for yourself and fiancee if you did have more energy. I ask you this: Do you really give two shits that you are overweight? How about clogged arteries, a higher chance of heart and liver disease, not being able to be active with your kids because you are too "freaking tired" after work. I do not inquire or write this to upset you, just to point out that their is a different way to living. Rather than blaming it on workload, perhaps you should look at the activities that fill your day and see where changes can be made. But like I said, some don't care about it enough to make the change. This is the type of people McDonald's caters to. And there are a lot of them.

Mind you water_boy, I'm 20, with no kids and in college. I plan on eventually starting some sort of exercise thanks to it not being the winter, but financially all we can afford half the time, espically around the end of the month are unhealthy foods such as ramen or a boxes of pasta. If there were moderately healthy foods that didn't cost so much we'd probably get those.

Aaahhhh...to be young and in love....oh, different thread.
Fallon, might I propose a suggestion? Have you peeked in Tilted Health and Fitness? There are tons of good threads on working out and losing the fat, gaining the muscle, and keeping fit. Plan9 has some particularly good feedback on workout questions.

Again, I hope I didn't offend you with my comments, it was only to point out that your thought process on losing weight is similar to a large population of the U.S., and perhaps the wrong process for people who want to drop a few pounds.

I would almost argue that Atkins in its current form is a fad diet. Yes atkins at heart is a way of life and such, but most people that are currently atkins crazy are just about the loosing weight fast cuase every one lese is doing it.

I also thought of something else. Is getting rid of super sizing even going to help. I actualy know someone that buys 3 cheese burgers, eats 2 and saves the other for later. When he gets home he batters it and deep fat fries it. He also blames his weight on every thing else but his love of fried food. Even if you got rid of all fast food these people would just drink ranch dressing like it was water and then blame the salad bars for serving such a fat filled topping. Or they would sit at home and eat sticks of butter, then sue the farmers for raising cows.

Instead of getting rid of options for the unresponcible we need to fix our socity and make, yes I sad MAKE, people take responcibility for their stupid actions.

I just hope they don't do away with the option to "upsize" the drink and still get the meal pricing. I need the large drink to last through the afternoon.

As long as I can still get my wonderful McRibb.

It is definitly a person's decision to eat what they want and in whatever quanity they want. But...just a thought...I think the "dollar menu" craze that has swept the fast food chains holds much more "unhealthy potential" than the concept of supersizing.

When I was a poor college student, the dollar menus offered a wonderful alternative to my creative versions of Ramen Noodles. When they started with the 99 cent cheesburgers (on Tuesdays for example)...I'd buy 10 and throw them in the freezer. Then everyone started with the dollar menus. I could get a hot, tastey meal for 2 or 3 bucks! We did it all the time.

Now that I'm out of college and have a decent job, I can afford to eat better. We limit our eating-out to once a week which is sometimes, but not always, fast-food. Never-the-less, it just seems that it is much cheaper and much more convienent to eat food that is "bad for you"; eating healthy requires more time and money, that some people just don't have.

Spot on. :)

This is the brainchild of some idiot at headquarters who just figured out a way to screw another dollar out the public's pocket.

Social responsiblity at McDonald's?!?! I almost snickered myself senseless at that. :D

I don't have the energy either. BUT I have to FIND THE ENERGY and the TIME to prepare for meals made HEALTHIER at home.

Why? because the option on NOT doing it now and paying for it with heart disease, clogged arteries, liver issues, kidney issues, etc. are much more painful and debilitating.

you can either pay for it now, or pay for it later. you pick.